[Federal Register Volume 79, Number 158 (Friday, August 15, 2014)]
[Notices]
[Pages 48114-48115]
From the Federal Register Online via the Government Printing Office
[FR Doc No: 2014-19410]
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DEPARTMENT OF AGRICULTURE
Food Safety and Inspection Service
[Docket No. FSIS-2014-0008]
Codex Alimentarius Commission: Meeting of the Codex Committee on
Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems (CCFICS)
AGENCY: Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, USDA.
ACTION: Notice of public meeting and request for comments.
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SUMMARY: The Office of the Under Secretary for Food Safety, U.S.
Department of Agriculture (USDA), Food Safety and Inspection Service
(FSIS) is sponsoring a public meeting on September 25, 2014. The
objective of the public meeting is to provide information and receive
public comments on agenda items and draft United States (U.S.)
positions to be discussed at the 21st Session of the Codex Committee on
Food Import and Export Inspection and Certification Systems (CCFICS) of
the Codex Alimentarius Commission (Codex), taking place in Australia,
October 13-17, 2014. The Under Secretary for Food Safety recognizes the
importance of providing interested parties the opportunity to obtain
background information on the 21st Session of the CCFICS and to address
items on the agenda.
DATES: The public meeting is scheduled for Thursday, September 25, 2014
from 1:00-4:00 p.m.
ADDRESSES: The public meeting will take place at the Jamie L. Whitten
Building, United States Department of Agriculture (USDA), 1400
Independence Avenue SW., Room 107-A, Washington, DC 20250. Documents
related to the 21st Session of the CCFICS will be accessible via the
World Wide Web at the following address: http://www.codexalimentarius.org/meetings-reports/en.
Mary Stanley, U.S. Delegate to the 21st Session of the CCFICS
invites U.S. interested parties to submit their comments electronically
to the following email address Mary.Stanley@fsis.usda.gov.
Call-In Number: If you wish to participate in the public meeting
for the 21st Session of CCFICS by conference call, please use the call-
in number and participant code listed below.
Call-in Number: 1-888-844-9904.
The participant code will be posted on the Web page below: http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/international-affairs/us-codex-alimentarius/public-meetings.
For Further Information About the 21st Session of the CCFICS
Contact: Mary Stanley, Director, International Relations and Strategic
Planning Staff, Office of Policy and Program Development, Food Safety
and Inspection Service, U.S. Department of Agriculture, Room 2925,
South Building, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Washington, DC 20250;
Phone: (202) 720-0287, Fax: (202) 720-4929, Email:
Mary.Stanley@fsis.usda.gov.
For Further Information About the Public Meeting Contact: Kenneth
Lowery, U.S. Codex Office, 1400 Independence Avenue SW., Room 4861,
Washington, DC 20250; Phone: (202) 690-4042, Fax: (202) 720-3157,
Email: Kenneth.Lowery@fsis.usda.gov.
SUPPLEMENTARY INFORMATION:
Background
Codex was established in 1963 by two United Nations organizations,
the Food and Agriculture Organization and the World Health
Organization. Through adoption of food standards, codes of practice,
and other guidelines developed by its committees, and by promoting
their adoption and implementation by governments, Codex seeks to
protect the health of consumers and ensure fair practices in the food
trade.
The CCFICS Committee is responsible for:
(a) Developing principles and guidelines for food import and export
inspection and certification systems with a view to harmonizing methods
and procedures which protect the health of consumers, ensure fair
trading practices, and facilitate international trade in foodstuffs;
(b) Developing principles and guidelines for the application of
measures by the competent authorities of exporting and importing
countries to provide assurance where necessary that
[[Page 48115]]
foodstuffs comply with requirements, especially statutory health
requirements;
(c) Developing guidelines for the utilization, as and when
appropriate, of quality assurance systems to ensure that foodstuffs
conform with requirements and to promote the recognition of these
systems in facilitating trade in food products under bilateral/
multilateral arrangements by countries;
(d) Developing guidelines and criteria with respect to format,
declarations, and language of such official certificates as countries
may require with a view towards international harmonization;
(e) Making recommendations for information exchange in relation to
food import/export control;
(f) Consulting as necessary with other international groups working
on matters related to food inspection and certification systems; and
(g) Considering other matters assigned to it by Codex in relation
to food inspection and certification systems.
The Committee is hosted by Australia.
Issues To Be Discussed at the Public Meeting
The following items on the agenda for the 21st Session of CCFICS
will be discussed during the public meeting:
Discussion paper on Principles and Guidelines for the
Elaboration and Management of Questionnaires Directed at Exporting
Countries.
Discussion paper on Principles and Guidelines for
Monitoring Regulatory Performance of National Food Control Systems.
Discussion paper on the revision of the Principles and
Guidelines for the Exchange of Information in Food Safety Emergency
Situations.
Draft amendments to Guidelines for the Exchange of
Information between Countries on Rejections of Imported Food.
Each issue listed will be fully described in documents distributed,
or to be distributed, by the Secretariat prior to the Committee
meeting. Members of the public may access or request copies of these
documents (see ADDRESSES).
Public Meeting
At the September 25, 2014, public meeting, draft U.S. positions on
the agenda items will be described and discussed, and attendees will
have the opportunity to pose questions and offer comments. Written
comments may be offered at the meeting or sent to Mary Stanley, U.S.
Delegate for the 21st Session of CCFICS (see ADDRESSES). Written
comments should state that they relate to activities of the 21st
Session of the CCFICS.
Additional Public Notification
FSIS will announce this notice online through the FSIS Web page
located at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/topics/regulations/federal-register.
FSIS will also make copies of this Federal Register publication
available through the FSIS Constituent Update, which provides
information on FSIS policies, procedures, regulations, Federal Register
notices, FSIS public meetings, and other matters that could affect or
would be of interest to constituents and stakeholders. The Update is
communicated via Listserv, a free electronic mail subscription service
for industry, trade groups, consumer interest groups, health
professionals, and other individuals who have asked to be included. The
Update is also available on the FSIS Web page. In addition, FSIS offers
an email subscription service which provides automatic and customized
access to selected food safety news and information. This service is
available at http://www.fsis.usda.gov/wps/portal/fsis/programs-and-services/email-subscription-service. Options range from recalls to
export information to regulations, directives and notices. Customers
can add or delete subscriptions themselves, and have the option to
password protect their accounts.
USDA Nondiscrimination Statement
The U.S. Department of Agriculture (USDA) prohibits discrimination
in all its programs and activities on the basis of race, color,
national origin, gender, religion, age, disability, political beliefs,
sexual orientation, and marital or family status. (Not all prohibited
bases apply to all programs.) Persons with disabilities who require
alternative means for communication of program information (Braille,
large print, audiotape, etc.) should contact USDA's Target Center at
(202) 720-2600 (voice and TTY).
To file a written complaint of discrimination, write USDA, Office
of the Assistant Secretary for Civil Rights, 1400 Independence Avenue
SW., Washington, DC 20250-9410 or call (202) 720-5964 (voice and TTY).
USDA is an equal opportunity provider and employer.
Done at Washington, DC, onAugust 12, 2014.
Mary Frances Lowe,
U.S. Manager for Codex Alimentarius.
[FR Doc. 2014-19410 Filed 8-14-14; 8:45 am]
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